Is Trans Fat Hiding in Your Food?

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you probably already...

…know that there are two types of fats: saturated and unsaturated. Unsaturated fats are more heart healthy than saturated fats because research shows that too many saturated fats raise blood cholesterol.

The worst type of saturated fat is called trans fat. The reason I say that trans fats are the worst is because they have been shown to both raise “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and lower “good” cholesterol (HDL), increasing the risk of heart disease.

Small amounts of trans fat occur naturally in full-fat dairy products and some meats, but food manufacturers also make a man-made version of trans fat by blasting mostly unsaturated fats (such as vegetable oils) with hydrogen atoms; thereby turning into a saturated fat. This process, known as hydrogenation, is used to lengthen the shelf life of foods and is very cheap. Unfortunately, though, eating foods with hydrogenated oils won’t increase our shelf life, and in fact, can have the opposite effect.

In 2005, the FDA passed a law that trans fats be listed on the Nutrition Facts label on all packaged foods. This has lead to many food manufacturers to reformulate their products to use less trans fat, but since the Nutrition Facts label is only required to list trans fats if they exceed half a gram or more per serving, trans fat may still be hiding in some of your favorite packaged foods.

This may not seem like a lot, but the American Journal of Health Promotion discussed this problem in a recent article. In it, Eric Brandt of the Case Western University School of Medicine explains how this makes it easy for consumers to unwittingly exceed suggested maximum intakes of trans fat (TF). Brandt noted that an increase of 2 percent of total energy intake from trans fats could lead to a 23 percent higher risk of cardiovascular disease. He calls for the FDA to change the laws to require products to list the true total trans fat content to provide the most accurate information to the public.

Before the regulations change, though, avoid products that have trans fat as much as possible. And even if a product boasts that it is “trans fat free” or shows 0g of trans fat on the Nutrition Facts label, I recommend that you also take a look at the ingredient list to see if the product is made with any hydrogenated oils. If it is, then the product does contain some man-made trans fat.

Here are a few products that surprisingly are made with trans fats, while still listing zero grams trans fat on their labels. Check your pantry for others:

Traditional peanut butter: Hydrogenated oils are added to prevent the oil from separating in the peanut butter. Use natural peanut butter instead to ensure that it’s trans fat free).

Many packaged crackers and cookies: Hydrogenated oils are added to increase the shelf life of these packaged foods to save the food manufacturer money. Look for ones without hydrogenated oils in the ingredient list or make your own!

Cake, bread/muffin, or pancake mixes: Hydrogenated oils are added for flavor, texture, and to increase the shelf life. Since you are hopefully not making cakes everyday, I recommend making them from scratch when you do.

Frozen pizzas and other frozen foods: Trans fats are added for flavor and to preserve the food. Try buying a 100% whole-wheat pre-made crust and adding your own toppings instead.